“We love him dearly,” Manuel Salgar, the victims father, told CBS4’s Gaby Fleischman. “I can not tell you my feelings inside when you lose somebody like this, especially the way he died.”

Salgar was a musician and beloved bartender at The Broken Shaker. Family and friends describe him as a creative and hard-working young man with a contagious laughter.

“Outgoing, passionate person with a great sense of humor,” said Adam Gersten, Salgar’s friend and former employer at Gramps Bar. “People will always be fanatics for Louis, he’s just that kind of guy.”

Police say a roommate found Salgar’s body on the floor of their home just before 3:00 p.m. Sources tell CBS4’s Gaby Fleischman, Salgar walked in while suspected thieves were ransacking the house.
Salgar’s father believes his son, who is trained in taeqwando, may have fought back before he was shot.

“All they had to do was steal what they were stealing and leave him there, why did they have to kill him?” said Salgar’s father.

“That’s the thing that I think all of us will have a hard time reconciling,” said Gersten. “The randomness.”

A massive manhunt for Salgar’s killer began Tuesday in West Palm Beach after Salgar’s stolen Honda was found ditched on the golf course of the swanky Breakers Hotel. While police won’t confirm the connection, family and friends say the abandoned car belonged to Salgar.

West Palm police were unable to track down any suspects, but believe one of them may be injured based on a bloody jacket found near the car.

“I wish they get caught so they will not do the same thing to other parents who is gonna lose the next kids,” said Manuel Salgar.

If you have any information you are asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.